When merchandising small articles of one kind or another, it is frequently desirable to ship them to the point of sale in a closed container and hang several containers on a rack. All or a portion of the container cover can then be removed to expose the container contents. This enables a customer to remove and purchase one or more of the articles as he or she desires. Often, cartons such as this also include a flap or card which projects from one end of the carton and functions as an advertising surface for the product in the carton and also as a hanger for suspending the carton from the rack so that its contents are readily accessible.
In some cases a customer may desire to purchase the entire remaining contents of a previously opened carton. However, with no provision made for reclosing the carton to properly contain the articles and protect them from dirt and moisture at home, he is reluctant to do so. He either buys a lesser quantity than he intended which is undesirable from the retailer's standpoint or the customer purchases a new carton but is dissatisfied because he has to purchase and pay for more articles than he intended.
Another problem with many prior dispensing cartons of this type is that they are of relatively weak construction so that, when suspended from their rack, they tend to sag and tear due to customers pushing down on the carton as they withdraw articles from it. At the very least, the carton then presents a display which is not particularly pleasing to the eye. Worse still it may give way entirely thereby spilling its contents on the floor.
So too a customer may wish to purchase a full carton. However, if he then tears the upstanding card off, the integrity of the carton may be degraded. On the other hand, if he does not do that, the card may interfere with placement of the box in the home.
Still other cartons of this general type are relatively complex structures requiring an undue amount of board stock and an excessive number of folding and glueing operations so that those cartons are relatively expensive to make.